Eli bertrand



(No Model.)

' E. BERTRAND.

METHOD OF LASTING AND UNITING THE UPPERS AND SOLES OF BOOTS AND SHOES.

No. 254,594. Patented Mar. 7,1882.

. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELI BERTRAND, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE GOOD- YEAR 82;MGKAY SEWING MACHINE COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

METHOD OF LASTING AND UNITING THE UPPER AND SOLES 0F BOOTS AND SHOES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 254,594, dated March 7,1882.

Application filed January 7, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

.Beit known that I, ELI BERTRAND, of Boston, county of Suffolk, State ofMassachusetts, have invented an Improved Method of Lasting and Unitingthe Upperand Soles of Boots and Shoes, of which the followingdescription, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is aspecification.

This invention relates to that class of boot or shoe known to the tradeas stitch-downs, in which the edges of the upper turned outward from therear part of the shank about the ball .and toe of the boot or shoereceives the stitches which unite the upper to the outer sole, or outerand filling soles. In this class of boot and shoe the upper, strainedover the last, has been held in place upon the last by a metallic clamp;but this is objectionable, for the clamp, besides being expensive tomake, is bulky, and increases the weight to be handled by the operator,takes up so much room as to make it impractical to unite the upper andsole together close to the last by a sewing-machine. In this my processI am enabled to entirely dispense with this clamp, shaped to correspondwith the outline of the bottom of the last, and yet keep the upper inplace and leave its outwardly-turned edges free to be stitched to theouter solo in an ordinary sole-sewin g machine.

In my process I first draw and stretch the upper to the last by means ofpinchers, as in hand-lasting, or otherwise, after which I drive at leastthree tacks through the upper into the last near its bottom edge, one ofthe said tacks being at the toe and one each at the side of the ball ofthelast, and I then drive two more tacks in a like manner into the lastin the shank. These tacks are driven into the upper with such relationto the bottom of the last and the thickness of the material of which theupper is composed as to serve as a point or stop over or against whichthe extended edge of the upper is bent when the said edge is turnedoutward from the last, the said tacks serving not only to define theline on which the said upper shall be turned to enable its edge to serveas a substitute for the usual welt, but also to hold the said upperfirmly in place on the last while sewing through the said edge close tothe bottom of the last.

Figure 1 represents, in side elevation and partial section, apartially-lasted boot or shoe; Fig. 2, in full lines, a front end viewof the toe of the upper with the edges of the upper turned down; but thedotted lines show the said edges turned up to receive stitches throughand through it and the sole outside the upper; and Fig. 3 is across-section of the upper and last on the line at as, Fig. 1. This Fig.3 shows the edges of the upper as having been turned upward and outwardinto substantially the plane of the bottom of the last and stitched toan outer sole.

The upper a, of leather, and the last I) may be of any usual kind. Idraw and fit the upper to thelastin any usual way, preferably by meansof pinchers. The edge of the upper is enough larger than the last toenable it to be turned outward, as shown at a to receive through it andthe sole 0, outside the upper on the last, the stitches d, which (shownin dotted lines, as in Fig. 3) secure the upper and sole together. Theupper having been drawn and stitched about the last, and at each side ofthe last near its ball, other tacks, 3, will be driven, and preferablyin the shank other tacks, 4.. After these tacks are driven, asdescribed, the edges of the upper are turned outward, as in Fig. 3, thesaid tacks operating to serve as a point back of which the upper cannotturn away from the last. These tacks serve toindicate and determine theline in which the bend e of the upper will be made, insuring theformation of the bend substantially at the line of the edge of thebottom of the last. With the edges of the upper turned back, as in Fig.3, from the rear of the shank all about the fore part of the last, theupper, with the last in it, and with an outer sole, 0, applied to it,may be placed in any solesewing machine, and be stitched together bystitches (I close to the edge of the last, after which the edge of theupper and sole outside of the said stitches may be trimmed and finishedin any usual manner. When the needle'reaches a point opposite the tacksor nails 2 3 4 they may be withdrawn, or the needle may pass the saidtacks or nails withoutdifficulty. The completed shoe will not containthe taoks .2 3 4, and the holes left in the upper after withdrawing themmay be filled with blacking, paste, or'rubber, so as not to injure theshoe.

I claim- The herein-described improvement in the manufacture of thatclass of boots and shoes in which the upper is turned outward andsecured to the top surface of the outer sole, the same consisting indrawing the upper over the last and securing it thereto by fastenings ator near the bottom edge of the last, then turning the edge of the upperoutwardly on a line with the said fastenings,and stitching such outi 5to this specification in the presence of two sub- 20 scribing witnesses.

ELI BERTR-AND;

Witnesses:

J os. P. LIVERMORE, B. J. NoYEs.

